November 2020. Twenty months away and yet Presidential candidates on the Democratic side are gearing up to face President Trump in the 2020 election. At the time of publication, 13 Democrats announced that they are running for president. While they are all in the same party, each candidate brings their own views as to how they believe the country should be run and how to defeat the incumbent. After the 2016 election, many Democrats have moved to a more liberal view, fighting for universal healthcare or free tuition while some have rejected a move left and are staying moderate.

Ending on January 25, 2019 and lasting 35 days, making it the longest in US history, the US government shutdown has finally concluded. Over the course of these 35 days, there were many events that occurred and many people were struggling and took a stand. People frequently ask: What was so bad that there needed to be a government shutdown for this long? The reason the shutdown occurred was because President Donald Trump didn’t get the funding he requested to build the $5 billion border wall to separate the United States from Mexico.

What is your first thought when you think of climate change? The earth’s atmosphere is heating up. Animals are becoming extinct from losing their homes. Sea levels are rising. Going deeper into the ocean, the coral reefs are affected by ocean acidification. Agriculture is suffering from shifting weather patterns. The warm, polluted air affects our health. The bigger question is, what could be causing all this harm on the planet?

Throughout New Jersey on February 13, members of the Roman Catholic Church scanned the long lists released by the state’s five dioceses of priests and deacons who were credibly accused of sexual assault. They totaled 188 names. Many of the priests have died, but 79 are living, most of whom have been removed from ministry.

On February 7th, Nutley High School held its annual Night of Nations. This is a fundraising event where students and faculty choose a nation and make food to represent that culture. The community then gathers and eats the food from all around the world, celebrating various ethnicities.

The United States-China trade war has been a hot topic in the media for the past year or so. The trade war has been ongoing since early 2018, back and forth between China and America and it initiated when President Trump opened a government probe regarding China’s theft of U.S. intellectual property. Recently, there have been a great number of discussions among the U.S. and Chinese officials regarding the war, leading to hope for peace in the future.

On November 17, 2018, 300,000 French civilians all across France flooded to the streets - not to celebrate an important day or moment, but to protest the government. Protests were targeted specifically towards President Emmanuel Macron’s new taxation policy. November 17 was “Act I” of the “Yellow Vest” movement. According to CNBC, since then, nine “acts” have been demonstrated throughout the entirety of France.

The government shutdown of 2019 has now become the longest in the United States, at 32 days at the time of this publication. President Trump called for a government shutdown after the Democrats refused to pay the over $5 billion needed to build a border wall. A government shutdown is not an actual shutdown, government workers, essential and non, still show up to work, but are not paid. Every non-essential government worker has been forced to work without pay including the TSA workers at airports, forest services, homeland security, and food stamp workers.

Northern New Jersey is under construction. Anyone who has driven through Rutherford in the last few years has seen the enormous construction project underway. The American Dream Mall has been on the books for over a decade now, and the light at the end of the tunnel can finally be seen. Triple Five is the notorious corporation behind the initiative and is also responsible for several other malls currently under construction around the country.

The minimum wage is the lowest possible rate that employers can pay employees. It was first introduced in 1938 at a rate of $0.25 an hour. At the time, the purpose of setting a minimum wage was to stabilize a post-depression economy in the United States. It was also used to protect the workers in a labor force.

American politics and media have been shaken by the progressive and socialist views of 29-year-old Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the youngest female Congressperson in United States history. With strong viewpoints and a strong demeanor, she has garnered a lot of press - both good and bad - as she continuously captures the media’s attention with an uncanny ability to direct the public eye to issues she is talking about.

With over 1,000 residents missing and nearly100 casualties and counting, the wildfires in California have been as devastating of a natural disaster as any in recent years. With billows of smoke traveling all the way across the country and reaching New York, the fire is breaking records of destruction in a place that is already in the midst of a drought and recently a mass shooting. With the fires beginning as early as September, the flames continue to grow with no end in sight.

Three-hundred seven. That’s the number of mass shootings that have occurred throughout 2018 in the United States. At press time, 1,579 people were directly affected by these shootings and thousands indirectly; 328 people died.

Yemen, a country which is located on the Arabian peninsula in Asia, is currently experiencing the world’s worst humanitarian crisis. The crisis primarily began with the 2011–2012 revolution against former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who had led Yemen for more than three decades. Issues intensified with the start of the Yemen War in 2015. The United States had 100 military advisors that were supporting the government’s fight against al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.

On November 6, 2018, the Nutley residents came out to vote for or against the school district’s referendum. The referendum focused on additions to John H. Walker Middle School, Washington, Yantacaw, and NHS. If the referendum had passed, the trailers at Washington and Yantacaw would have been removed, with additional space added, the sixth graders would have moved into an expanded middle school and the high school would gain much needed space. The proposals also added enhanced security to the district.

On November 1, 2018, CEO of Amazon, Jeff Bezos announced that Amazon would raise the minimum wage to $15, more than double the $7.25 federal minimum wage. This change was enacted after Amazon received backlash for having a low employee median income of $28,446 per year. “We’re excited about this change and encourage our competitors and other large employers to join us,” said Bezos.

New Jersey is officially one step closer to legalizing recreational marijuana. For many months, legislators have had false starts and delays to vote on a bill. However, on November 26, 2018, lawmakers finally advanced a bill that would legalize possession and recreational use of marijuana.

It’s that time of the year again, Thanksgiving. The one day families across the country gather around the table and give thanks. Through November and December, everyone is getting ready for Thanksgiving and the holidays. Shopping and holiday preparation is underway during these two months.